New York City is, without a doubt, home to some of the best food in the world. With gourmet chefs and innovative new food trends, it’s far too easy to eat your way through the city. Pretty much everything tastes like heaven, but there are a few foods in particular that have stood the test of time and have become Big Apple staples. Whether you’re a real New Yorker or not, we can all admit that there are some things that classically NYC.
Halal Food (or any street food, really)
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Food trucks, food carts, food on the move—that’s how New Yorkers like it. Despite the thousands of amazing restaurants this city has to offer, sometimes everyone needs a break from fine dining. And thats why we love our street food. Theres nothing that hits the spot quite like a gyro fresh off the Halal cart or a warm (and sometimes questionable) street hot dog.
Doughnuts
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Doughnuts are often the unsung hero when it comes to New York City food. The fancy, dressed up donut has climbed its way up the food chain, and now it’s almost impossible to find a simple plain or glazed donut (but that’s not such a bad thing). New Yorkers like their doughnuts to be anything but ordinary—after all, if it isn’t crazy and over-the-top, it isn’t New York.
Pizza
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Ahh, the NYC pizza pie. A longtime New York staple, you can find a slice on just about every block in the city. With $1 slices, classic pies straight out of Italy and even pizza topped with pasta, New Yorkers will always stand behind their signature dish. And whether you’re a New Yorker or not, who doesn’t love a good slice of New York pizza?
Bagels
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There’s no question about it: when it comes to bagels, you just can’t beat New York. We’ve got everything from classic, time-honored mom and pop bagel shops to Brooklyn’s trendy rainbow bagels (complete with birthday cake cream cheese). And honestly, when you’re living in the bagel capital of America, how could you not be hooked?
(Overly expensive) Coffee
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You don’t have to be from the Big Apple to love coffee, but it does take a real New Yorker to pay $4 for a small latte. Why? Because we sometimes we just want to sit down in a hip, yet cozy, cafe and have a fancy latte while we get our work done and escape the craziness of the streets.
Chinese Takeout
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We’ve all seen at least one NYC movie involving Chinese takeout in the little white boxes, and we’ve all had our fair share of it too. New York is home to some of the best Chinese food (outside of China) and one of the oldest, most established Chinatown neighborhoods in the country.
Like most places in NYC, Chinese restaurants deliver late into the wee hours of the morning, so if you’re a real New Yorker you’ve probably spent many nights at home with your dumplings and lo mein because you want to be like the movie stars (or maybe because you’re just trying to get over a long day of life in the city).
Brunch
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To the rest of the world, Sunday may be the day of rest, but in New York its the day of brunch. Why? because as Ron Swanson famously said, “There has never been a sadness that can’t be cured by breakfast food.” But seriously, who doesn’t love a good reason to dress up and eat fancy foods with their crew? Plus, nearly every restaurant serves brunch on a daily basis. Whether it’s a chic new vegan spot or a classic plate of eggs and bacon, New Yorkers love brunch almost as much as Serena and Blair do.